What is the best dog food?

There are so many dog and cat foods on the market right now and most people are totally oblivious to healthy and unhealthy dog and cat food. I used to be, but after looking into dog and cat food and researching it I have completely changed my ways when it comes to dog and cat food. All of the food in Wal Mart and most foods from other stores such as Petsmart are unhealthy garbage. Why? Because they either carry:

“Artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives,” all of these can cause cancer and several other health problems. Cancer is the #1 killer of cats and dogs.

“By-products,” they are the junk in meat that are not approved for humans to eat. Road kill, cancerous, dead, and dying animals are allowed as well.

“Fillers,” are corn, wheat, and soy products that virtually don’t have any nutrition in them. They pass right through. Which also makes your dog have to eat more food to feel full.

Surely good dog and cat foods such as Science diet, Eukanuba, Iams, Pedigree, and Purina don’t have any of those and are great to feed my dogs and cats right? Wrong. These foods have most if not all of these terrible things.

Here are the first ten ingredients of three of the so called best foods, which make up most of what your dogs and cats eat and are the most important. The capitol words are the main

Things that are wrong with them.

Purina adult complete nutrition- WHOLE GRAIN CORN, POULTY BY-PRODUCT MEAL, ANIMAL FAT preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), CORN GLUTEN MEAL, MEAT AND BONE MEAL, brewers rice, soybean meal, barley, whole grain wheat, animal digest… (There is nothing good in that list at all)

Eukanuba-Chicken, CHICKEN BY-PRODUCTS MEAL, CORN MEAL, GROUND WHOLE GRAIN SORGUM, Ground Whole Grain Barley, Fish Meal (source of fish oil), Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Brewers Rice, Natural Chicken Flavor, Dried Beet Pulp (sugar removed)… (Most of what you see are either fillers or by-products)

Science Diet- GROUND WHOLE GRAIN CORN, CHICKEN BY-PRODUCT MEAL, Soybean Meal, ANIMAL FAT (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Soybean Oil, Chicken Liver Flavor, Flaxseed, Iodized Salt, vitamins (L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Vitamin E Supplement, … (first ingredient is a filler followed by by-products and more fillers)

Here is a list of both cat and dog well known foods and treats to stay away from-Fancy Feast, Alpo, Friskies,Mighty Dog, Dog Chow, Cat Chow, Puppy Chow, Kitten Chow, Beneful, Purina One, Purina ProPlan, DeliCat, HiPro, Kit’n’Kaboodle, Tender Vittles, Purina Veterinary Diets, MeowMix, Gravy Train, Kibbles ’n Bits, Wagwells, 9Lives, Cycle, Skippy, Nature’s Recipe, Milk Bone, Pup-Peroni, Snausages, Pounce, Pedigree, Waltham’s, Cesar, Sheba, Temptations, Goodlife Recipe, Sensible Choice, Excel, Hills Prescription Diets, Nature’s Best, Diamond, Ol’Roy, Iams, Nutro, Royal Canin.

Here are some foods that I recommend- Innova, California Natural, Evo, Blue Buffalo, Taste of the wild, Wellness, Merrick Before grains, Chicken soup for the cat lovers soul, Health Wise, Karma, Orijen. Plus there are many more great foods not listed. You have to look at the ingredients list of any food that you feed your dog. If it have any of the things listed as bad then immediately put it down.

To show what a good healthy dog food looks like, here is the ingredient list of Taste of the Wild High Prairie- Bison, venison, lamb meal, chicken meal, egg product, sweet potatoes, peas, potatoes, canola oil, roasted bison, roasted venison, natural flavor, tomato pomace, ocean fish meal, choline chloride, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Saccharomyces cerevesiae fermentation solubles, dried Aspergillus oryzae fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

When did chicory, carrots, peas, apples and cranberry become dog food ingredients? There isn't much real difference between these foods. One uses chicken and turkey, the other only uses chicken. Neither uses corn or wheat. The biggest difference is the fruits and vegetables in the chicken soup brand. Both are made by the same company and its a good bet that the major ingredients come from the same sources. Unless there is an allergy problem your dog will be fine with either food. Feed whichever one is easier to get. The prices are close enough to the same, especially considering how little one pomeranian will eat. If you were feeding a working dog you might notice a difference between those foods but not with a normal family pet.

There is probably no "best" dog food. The only way to know what is good is to read the ingredient list. If its advertised on TV, sold in a supermarket or Walmart, its probably not a quality food. A few of the better dog foods are: Orijen, Blue Buffalo, Innova, Taste of the Wild, and Solid Gold

I feed a half and half mix of Castor and Pullox Natural Ultramix and Natural Balance limited ingredient diet. My reasoning.... I have an epileptic dog who cannot have any wheat, dairy, or corn, and a highly allergic dog who cannot have any beef or dairy products. Therefor I use a high quality food with ingredients that I can see, read, and understand. No fillers, no by products, no dyes, no junk. My dogs are all thriving, super healthy, shiny coats, and happy. I run a rat terrier rescue so deal with all types of ratties, sensitive, allergic, or normal and they all thrive on this mixture.

Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul is what I feed my dog. She's doing great on it and it's a great food. It doesn't have any fillers like those other foods do.

Also, Taste of the Wild is a great food also! Again, no fillers. When I was at the feed store the other day, the guy said it's basically what a dog would eat if he/she was in the wild. So, that one is really good also.

Hope I helped!(:

I believe there is no single answer. I have 10 dogs and have at least 3 different foods going at any given time. I believe you have to try a few different ones to get a feel for how well the dog does and it may not be the right food for it's entire life. Actually I see some dogs who thrive best if their food is changed regularly. (Roast beef, green beans and potatoes is a great meal but would you be healthy or really want to eat it if you had the same thing every night?)

I found this to be quite helpful.

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/2539722/How-to-Grade-D...

If you are looking for specifics, I feed mainly the Purina Pro Plan formulas - the Salmon one has no wheat or corn which is great for some dogs.

Fresh food. Fresh chicken and turkey and beef. Fresh raw vegetables and fruits. Fresh brown rice and oatmeal. Fresh yogurt, eggs, and cottage cheese.

This is not "people food." Calling real food "people food" makes it sound as though people are the only living creatures who are entitled to eat fresh foods.

I think Merrick is the best, I feed it to my bulldog. It's a bit pricey but it's top of the line and he absolutely loves it. I switch the flavor every time I buy a bag to give him variety but it comes in all sorts of different blends.

Check out their website!

http://www.merrickpetcare.com/

natural choice-small breed hard food!! i too have a rat terrier. and i couldnt be more happy with the food we feed him. his coat is shiny. he's lean, and most of all healthy. he loves his food. every once in awhile we change it up with the wet food.. and he thinks hes getting a treat. hope i helped. =)

Check this site for dog food reviews. Aim for at least a 4-star food.

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/